[BC] Cousin Brucie

[George Kowal]

WBRadiolists at aol.com wrote:
> In a message dated 04/08/2008 8:39:09 AM Eastern Daylight Time, 
> richwood at pobox.com writes:
>
>   
>> Bruce always struck me as a born personality. He loves it. There's a 
>>  wonderful child-like quality to him and I wouldn't expect him to 
>>  enjoy handling the business end of the industry.
>>     
> (snip)
>   
>>  He's a great guy with a love of people. At WOR I always hoped he'd do 
>>  the morning show if John Gambling ever left.
>>     
>
> I kind'a grew-up listening to him on WABC. My parents really liked that 
> station, so it was on in the house. A LOT. We took a radio to the beach all the 
> time. My Mom would often sit on the back stoop to watch my brother and I playing, 
> with that radio going. Thus, I have most of my early memories centered around 
> WABC in the summer. (It was from about 1966-68. I was born in '62.)
>
> This is why I think it is a real shame that he wasn't able to make that 
> station fly! Own it, but let someone who is Business Savvy (in the GOOD sense) take 
> care of the minutae, so he can have an airshift to do what he LOVES! :) I'm 
> sure WRAN would have picked up more listeners, had he done that.
>
> Willie...
>
>   
Sometime back in the 1960's Brucie emceed a live outdoor concert 
sponsored by one of the big department store chains in Elizabeth, NJ.
This was before suburban sprawl and suburban malls and city centers like 
Elizabeth where in the mainstream of society, commerce and economics.
I was still a school kid back then, but the show was free, and the crowd 
was very much thrilled by Bruce.
So much thrilled that after the show was over. Bruce had to walk through 
the crowd to get to his limousine.
He was so mobbed over by fans, that by the time he got to the limo, very 
very little was left of his clothes.
Very little or non-existent crowd control back then and the audience all 
wanted a souvenir of Cousin B.

During the WRAN years in the 1980's I used to meet Bruce each year at 
the booth his station would setup at the Dover NJ St Pat's day parade.
I remember talking to him about the concert in E'town, among other 
things, which he definitely remembered also.

George Kowal